The government on Friday approved four sets of mergers that will reduce the number of state-owned banks to 12.
The move is part of efforts to clean up the banking system that is struggling with bad loans.
Speaking of bad loans, Dewan Housing Finance Corp (DHFL), Sterling Biotech Ltd and Jet Airways were among the distressed companies which made headlines this week.
DHFL's board on Friday approved a plan that included converting debt into equity, even as it seeks to sell assets and raise more capital. DHFL has been one of the biggest casualties of the NBFC crisis, which has completed a year now since Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS) defaulted last year.
In the Sterling Biotech case, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) set aside a lower court’s order to liquidate the company and allowed its lenders to withdraw insolvency proceedings.
Meanwhile, lenders to Jet airways extended the deadline to submit expressions of interest again to August 31. After the previous August 10 deadline, South America-based Synergy Group Corp, which owns a majority stake in Colombian airline Avianca Holdings, showed interest in investing in Jet.
